Corporate Plan 2012 - 2015 - Lambeth Council

Our aspirations for Lambeth
Lambeth is one of the most diverse places in the UK and Europe. In a very real sense it is “the world in one borough”. It is important that every
community feels at home here, secure both in their separate identity and also as part of Lambeth as a whole. Underpinning this is the belief that
Lambeth Council must work, in a cooperative fashion, with all its communities to ensure their ambitions are met because no single model of service
provision can possibly meet such a complex patchwork of needs.
Through this cooperative endeavour, working together with the borough's citizens, Lambeth seeks to realise its goals to create a fair and socially
just borough which is:
caring
aspirational
safe and secure
A caring borough
Lambeth believes that the true measure of a community is the way it treats its most disadvantaged and vulnerable citizens (such as families on very
low incomes, the elderly, those with disabilities or poor physical or mental health). Lambeth is clear that these groups cannot be left behind and
must be given the chance to set and achieve their own aspirations, drawing on the resources London has to offer as a major world city. As a
progressive borough, Lambeth believes that the most effective way to care for these citizens is to improve the outcomes achieved by our poorest
and most vulnerable communities so they are closer to those achieved by the most affluent. At a time of shrinking resources, this will be achieved
by moving away from universal services that are open to all towards targeted services that support those citizens in greatest need.
As a result of this targeted work aimed at preventing social disadvantage we want to see a reduction in income inequality between the poorest and
most affluent in the borough, support for our most vulnerable families, and the provision of a range of preventative health and social care services to
enable citizens to lead healthy and active lifestyles.
As well as improving the life chances of our citizens the council must also continue to be the champion for all people in Lambeth, including our
employees – but in particular, seeking to ensure that our most vulnerable residents are protected from the effects of public sector cuts. We will
achieve this by ensuring the voices of our residents and communities are heard by central government, working with other elected representatives
to ensure Lambeth is not disadvantaged by national policy decisions, and through pro-active lobbying of central and regional government both
directly and through organisations such as London Councils and the Local Government Association (LGA).
3